


Taking an Offensive

by PandoraAbyss



Series: Feelings that follow Rebirth [7]
Category: Katekyou Hitman Reborn!, Naruto
Genre: Comparisons to Pein, Hibari was captured and is Done, M/M, Mukuro is Mukuro, The Kokuyou Arc Fights, Tsuna is worried and acts a little OOC
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-25
Updated: 2017-04-01
Packaged: 2018-10-10 16:29:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,534
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10442121
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PandoraAbyss/pseuds/PandoraAbyss
Summary: Tsuna and the others have gone to the Kokuyou Centre, to fight Mukuro and stop all of this. Mukuro sits watching and Hibari...is waiting.





	1. Chapter 1

Hibari was annoyed.

At this point annoyance was pretty much his constant state of being.

That damn _pineapple head_ (he could already hear Tsuna laughing at the nickname he came up with – god he missed his sunshine already) had beaten him easily. Too easily. But it hadn’t been very long since one of his lackeys had picked him up and thrown him into this dark room. He was very good at tracking time – he estimated that it’s been about an hour or so.

It had taken him a while to wiggle out of the rope they had tied him with. Idiots. It would take more than just _rope_ to keep him down. ( _A memory flashed in the back of his mind, his sunshine glaring up at him as he smugly told him that there were techniques to easily get out of binds. It amused him that the idiot didn’t remember something so basic, but of course he didn’t. It was him after all._) The last he checked the only thing that could really keep him locked in place were chains.

Still, just getting out of the rope had taken him more energy than he was willing to admit, and he was pretty sure these wounds wouldn’t just fully heal in 5 minutes. He couldn’t move around all that much without wasting energy he would need to kick that arrogant asshole’s face in. He relished in the thought of beating down that pineapple that _somehow_ knew his weakness. _No one_ knew about that, not even his mother…he hadn’t even had the opportunity to tell Tsuna about it.

It was odd, and there was still the fact that around him, his senses still felt _muddy._ It was familiar like…

_He pinned him to the wall, forcing him to look into his red eyes. He was thrusted back then, into that time…seeing all that blood. Having to watch over and over as everyone was-_

He forced himself out of the memory, shivering. Nope. No. _Not now._ This was not the time to remember how he had…forced him to see images he didn’t want to.

Wait.

 _Fuck_.

Hibari felt like kicking himself. Or kicking the asshole pineapple. Was that an option? Even if it wasn’t he would _make_ it an option.  

Illusions. The damn _fucker_ was using illusions.

Hibari was no stranger to illusions – he had quite a few memories where he used them effectively against enemies. The memory where illusions were used against _him_ haunted him every night!

Once again, he wished he still had his past abilities. They would be awfully useful in a situation like this. He could feel and imagine lightning at his fingertips, destroying the wall before him.

For now, all he could do was plan an escape.

Or at least hope for a path towards one.  

The injured teen stood up, holding his side (he was pretty sure that one of the pineapple’s kicks had broken a rib) and he began to look for _any_ kind of weakness on the cold, bumpy walls. He could hear things break under his feet – wood, possibly from desks, and some glass are the most prominent.

There were no weaknesses in the walls, though he could tell one was connected to a hallway. That was noteworthy for the future, but it didn’t help him much at the moment.

He kicked around the room for a bit as his eyes slowly adjusted to the darkness. His tonfa weren’t here either. All he had was some small, insignificant pieces of broken glass, broken piles of wood, and the rope from earlier.

Great.

Perfect.

Wonderful.

Hibari grimaced. Despite his annoyance he had to admit, these _thugs_ were far smarter than he thought they would be.

With a sigh, he slid onto his knees, and leaned against the wall. There was no use in wasting his energy by standing. He’d have to wait until one of the pineapple’s lackeys came for whatever they were planning. He would be able to fight them at that point…

But…he hated waiting.

Closing his eyes, his mind wandered where it was bright, where Tsuna was smiling and laughing and looked at him with those bright brown eyes. With a frown, he suddenly realized his last memory of him was one of worry, where Tsuna was running towards the hospital…

He really didn’t want that to be his last memory of his sunshine.

He began to whistle softly, trying to calm himself down. No, he _would_ see Tsuna again. And when he did, he would have already kill- _beaten_ that pineapple and Tsuna wouldn’t have to worry.

O~O~O

A small bird, one of yellow feathers and filled with absolute loyalty for their master, sang their song as they circled the area their master was trapped in.

Hibird would find help. Hibird couldn’t let their master down.

O~O~O

“Whoa…” Tsuna muttered, standing in front of a gate upon an area caked in dried mud and rocks; an old Centre that was long abandoned for years. The highway was eerily quiet, and without the usual comfort of cars or civilization nearby, Tsuna felt a shiver run up his spine. “That’s…really ominous…” He offered weakly to the group that seemed unaffected and said nothing at his comment. He felt almost like they were all in a horror film but only _he_ was the one who could hear the scary background music.

“Is the whole area just ruins?” Gokudera asked from behind him, looking up at the area with a vague sense of awe.

“Yes…long ago, this was all a complete entertainment resort called Kokuyou Centre.” Reborn, who had climbed onto Yamamoto’s shoulder moments before, informed them.

 _Kokuyou Centre…?_ The name was familiar, and for a moment he had a memory of when he was small, cheerfully holding onto his mother’s hand as well as his – anyway, he could remember how popular the area was. He would often see teenagers who would hang out in front of the cinema, a karaoke club his mother adored, and a garden zoo he begged to go to whenever they visited.

But the last time they had gone, he was around five or six. It was also around the time _that guy_ started sporadically visiting…

Reborn went on to tell them how the Centre was widely popular up until a mudslide ruined the area completely. There were no plans to repair it, so they left it in the sorry state it was in now.  

The story caused a sinking feeling in Tsuna’s chest, who did have some fond memories here. But, the nostalgia didn’t stop the uneasy feeling he had. It was like looking at the entrance of a haunted house.

Gokudera walked past him up to the chains keeping the gate locked. He inspected it for a moment before frowning. “The lock’s all rusted…it doesn’t look like they used it as an entrance. What should we do?” He glanced at Tsuna. The brunette blinked before letting out a surprised yelp. He wasn’t exactly “leader material” after all, no matter the fact that he was supposed to become the future mafia boss.

Bianchi, luckily enough, “saved” him before he was really given any time to come up with a “solution.” She easily melted the lock with her acid-like cooking (the look of it eating through the rust made Tsuna sick to his stomach) and they went through.

Tsuna shivered as the uneasy feeling intensified. He stepped closer to the others who were acting like this was just a _walk in the park_. The familiar sense of someone watching them made him extremely paranoid, and every slight noise around them made him jump.

Then there was the feeling of _Hibari_ was close was getting stronger…

He shook away the image of Hibari, pushing it to the back of his mind. He had to _focus._ If they run into Hibari, that was great, but they _needed_ to find Fuuta. That was their mission. Just thinking of what they could be subjecting the kid to made him both sick and angry.

“Tsuna.”

Reborn’s strangely commanding voice brought him out of his thoughts, and he glanced up at him. “Yeah…?”

“Since you’ve been here before, lead the way.”

“ _What?!”_ His jaw dropped. “The last time I was here was a long time ago!” Not to mention he still felt disoriented from the horrible flashback of that girl _dying_. Mixing that with how tense he was and the feeling of being watched wasn’t at all good for him right now. He feared another flashback would slam him in the face soon, especially if they were attacked.

“Come on Tsuna,” Yamamoto put a hand on his shoulder. “You can _try,_ right?” His expression formed into worry as he lowered his voice. “You don’t have to if you aren’t calm yet from earlier…”

Tsuna’s face felt hot from embarrassment as he remembered Yamamoto had seen that awful panic attack earlier. Usually, he was away from Yamamoto and Gokudera when he would break down like that. Or, Hibari was usually the one who could realize very quickly that he had a terrible flashback and usher him away before his friends could fully see the damage. And when Hibari _wasn’t_ there, he would lock himself somewhere and ride it out as long as he had to (there’s been quite a few times where he’s sat in the bathroom of his house, completely drained and tears dried to his face). Was he worried he would go through another one…?

It was sweet, Tsuna had to admit, but he still pulled away. He hoped his expression was reassuring, but he never _was_ good at acting. “I can do it…I think.” He added under his breath, before stepping in the lead. With a quick glance around, he tried to dig up memories from this life.

 _Wasn’t there…a glass building? Near the entrance…?_ He wondered as he slowed down slightly, staring at the path. _Yeah…there was a glass building that had the garden zoo…_

Sadly, the area that was supposed to hold the glass building was instead a sad site of rubble and dried mud. There was no way they could have used any of it as a hideout or even a “cell” for anyone. So Fuuta couldn’t be there ( _or Hibari,_ Tsuna added to himself, dejectedly).

Still, they looked around…and Yamamoto found animal tracks.

They were huge, bigger than most dogs, and seemed to track blood. For a moment, Tsuna was reminded of a smiling boy with fangs and marks on his face, followed around by a large white dog. He suddenly wished the boy was here, vaguely remembering that he was a tracker.

Bianchi pointed out large gashes in the trees, and broken cages among the pile of rubble from the broken-down zoo that that bite marks around the edges of the bars. Matched with the sudden familiar feeling of _pure animalistic bloodlust_ he had a _suspicion_ they had walked right into their first ambush of the day.

His feeling was right when zombie-like feral animals suddenly attacked them, aiming for Yamamoto and Gokudera first.

As they began to run, another one – more human but still just as feral – came from underground, attacking the one nearest to him.

Which happened to be Yamamoto.

He slid on the ground, and fell into a hole, the mystery person who had attacked him followed, yelling, “Welcome!” with sick glee.

Reborn was the first to figure out that were standing on the roof of the garden zoo, but now all they could do was watch as Yamamoto was forced to fight one of the guys from Kokuyou.

 

Ken was fast, he was dangerous, and Yamamoto _still thought it was a game._

It was getting to the point where Tsuna practically just wanted to sit him down and _tell him_ he was in _actual danger_ during these fights _._ Sure, he might lose Yamamoto as a friend (and as a Family member, but Reborn was far more concerned with that than he was) but it would be worth it not to see Yamamoto hurt… 

Gokudera seemed as worried as he was, wanting to blow up the place but _couldn’t_ or Yamamoto would have been buried under the rubble.

Tsuna had to admit, it was reassuring to see someone worrying just as much as he was.

It was the point where Yamamoto admitted he had important things to do this autumn, reminding Tsuna of the tournament coming up, that he felt guilt. He shouldn’t have agreed to let Yamamoto come…he had more important things to worry about. He loved baseball and not being able to play this season would definitely cause him to do something drastic.

So, to answer his fears…

Reborn decided to push Tsuna in.

He felt like cursing his “mentor” with every swear he knew, and that was including the ones he made up in his past.  

Yamamoto, with the new danger of his friend getting hurt, fought seriously and won. Though, he injured his arm in the process. It was well enough that he could still keep going with baseball later that season, luckily enough.

It didn’t stop Tsuna from feeling guilty.

 

Bianchi had brought rope (“You never know when you need it, right?” Bianchi winked. Tsuna shivered.) so they tied up Ken in the hole just in case he woke up again and decided to follow them. She had also carried some medical supplies, so she cleaned and bandaged Yamamoto’s wound before Reborn gave him a new bat to fight with.

“Well,” Gokudera smiled wide, relief that the fight was over was prominent on his face. “We just beat the animal freak and it looks like spectacles is still out…I didn’t think bringing down Mukuro would be such a breeze!”

Tsuna grimaced. If he knew _anything_ about opponents like these, there was no way that they were beaten this easily, no matter how hopeful it seemed at first.. He opened his mouth just to voice that when Ken began laughing from the hole he was in.

_Here we go…_

“There’s no way you can defeat Mukuro-san!” He laughed. “All of you are going to die before you see his face!”

Tsuna got a sudden memory of multiple people with orange hair cloaked in red. He hated how familiar it felt, it just made everything all the more _disorienting._

…wait. He might be close to Mukuro, right? Or at least, Mukuro must have shared information with him…

“H-Hey…” Tsuna went to the side of the hole, just as Gokudera threw sand in. He stopped Bianchi with a hand as she was about to knock Ken out with a large rock she had found. He looked down at Ken, his heart beating fast as he uneasily voiced his question. His voice wavered. “B-Before us…was there…another person who came here? Dark hair and eyes, wielding two tonfa and wearing the Namimori Uniform?”

Everything seemed to pause and the air felt thick. Ken stared at him in surprise, the others did as well. Gokudera let out an annoyed sound before standing up, stuffing his hands into his pockets and going to stand next to Yamamoto, grumbling. Tsuna heard a sigh from Reborn and Bianchi giggled, muttering something about “young love.” He tried to ignore them, determination, anxiety, and _anger_ from a previous life fueled him, he glared down at the animalistic boy, clenching his fists.

“ _Answer me._ ” He practically growled through clenched teeth. “Have you _seen him_ or _not_?!”

“Oh, _that_ guy?” Ken laughed. “What, is he your _boyfriend_ or something? Well don’t hold your breath! I’m sure Mukuro has thrown him away by now! _Especially_ if _you’re_ here after him!”

Tsuna felt the urge to punch him, tears prickling his eyes at the thought of Hibari hurt or dead. But he knew Hibari was alive, he could _feel_ it. And he _knew_ that it wouldn’t end well if he jumped in there to try to get information out of Ken first-hand.

His mind glossed over what Ken had said once again, and he tried to ignore how his cheeks were obviously going red at the _boyfriend_ comment (they’re just friends! This was a completely platonic thing that was happening between them!) but it was hard to when Ken was laughing and the others, save for Gokudera, were staring at him.

“Tsuna…” Reborn suddenly called out in warning. “We talked about this…”

He gritted his teeth. Right. _Mission first, Hibari second_.

He was starting to regret “promising” that to Reborn.

 _(“_ _Those that break the rules and regulations are scum. But those who abandon their comrades are even worse than scum.”_ The words echoed in Tsuna’s mind. He tried to ignore it.)

 

With a grumble at Bianchi to drop the rock, he turned away to try and calm himself. Though, he had to admit…the sound of it hitting Ken right in the face, followed by a low groan and Bianchi’s comments of him twitching was sickeningly satisfying.

No one asked him about Hibari or even mentioned him as they moved on.

A part of him was incredibly grateful, even if he felt like they were judging him for letting his emotions take over like that.

O~O~O

_Tsuna is here._

The realization came suddenly, like a slap to the face or a salty wave had hit him and knocked him to the ground.

One moment, he was trying to focus on letting his wounds heal, and in another his eyes had snapped open as the feeling hit him.

It was odd, with the realization that somehow, he was connected to Tsuna on such a level that he could _feel_ when he was nearby. It was indescribable, like an itch that wouldn’t go away or the prickling feeling of something just barely grazing your skin.

He decided not to tell Tsuna this. He probably didn’t feel it like he did.

Still, his heart jumped with the realization that Tsuna was probably here to look for him. And on that path, he would end up fighting the pineapple who he didn’t know was using illusions for battle.

He needed to get out. Now.

Tsuna wasn’t getting hurt. And if that pineapple _did_ try to hurt him…

Well, _hell_ wouldn’t even be _close_ to what Hibari was going to rain down on him.


	2. Chapter 2

They were attacked again.

It wasn’t really a _surprise_ ; they had put their guard down significantly when Tsuna asked if they could take a break and eat. But in the end, the sushi was ruined (Tsuna’s stomach growled in protest of the lost meal) and Bianchi entered into a battle with a girl who used a flute as a weapon. _It felt oddly familiar, the memory of a foul-mouthed enemy who had used a flute-like weapon to attack filled Tsuna’s mind at the sight of her_.

Honestly, watching a fight between someone who uses their flute to make things explode and someone who uses heavily poisoned cooking was odd yet interesting at the same time.

In the end, the girl who was greedy for money was defeated easily by Bianchi, who’s twisted sense of love somehow caused her to prevail.

So Tsuna wasn’t exactly expecting a man to walk up to them, holding a laptop that clearly showed a video feed of Kyoko and Haru.

“What- what are you doing with that?!”

“Now, now, calm down…” The man’s smirk made Tsuna feel sick, but they were forced to stay quiet as they watched the video feed of Haru and Kyoko walking home.

The man, who’s name was _Birds_ of all things, told and showed them how they were both being tailed by serial killers. And, if they didn’t follow his orders, they would be killed.

Tsuna winced, already getting a terrible feeling about this.

“Now…” He smirked. “I want one of you to give the Vongola number 10 boss a real pounding, please.”

“ _What_?!” Gokudera was the only one to exclaim, though Tsuna swallowed.

“We…don’t have a choice, right?” Tsuna muttered, glancing at his friends who stared at him in surprise.

“But Tsuna—!”

“You shouldn’t—!”

“If we _don’t_ Kyoko and Haru will be…!” He glanced at the screen, once again feeling sick at how the serial killers hovered over the innocent girls. Guilt ate at his chest. He swallowed before turning to Yamamoto and Gokudera. “Please just…we should get this over with. Beat me up.”

 _I’m disoriented right now…so it shouldn’t hurt as much since I’m used to pain in the past…_ He thought to himself, giving his best friends a pleading look.

“That’s crazy…” Yamamoto muttered

“There’s no way I can do something like that!” Gokudera growled

Tsuna opened his mouth again, hoping he could convince them, when Bianchi suddenly punched him, knocking him to the ground.

“S-Sis! What the hell are you doing?”

She hummed. “From the beginning, I came to Japan to kill Tsuna, right?” She seemed indifferent, cold, though she wouldn’t look at any of them. Tsuna could hear the guilt in her voice. “...Lucky for me that I have this chance now.”

“Right…” Tsuna muttered, rubbing his cheek. The world was twisting in his disoriented state. His cheek felt numb instead of pain, though he knew there was a bruise that would be left behind.

Birds laughed. “Nice job, one clear! Now, if you clear the next two, the girls will go free.”

“A- _Another one_?” Tsuna’s mouth dropped. _Of course_ , it was too good to be true; hoping that this would end after only one measly punch.

“Next then…” He reached into his coat and pulled out a sharp knife that made Tsuna’s heart drop. “Please stab Sawada-kun with this knife.”

“That’s going to far!” Even Bianchi objected.

“Quit fucking around!” Gokudera growled, his hand twitched as if he wanted his bombs.

The man just smirked, showing that acid would be poured onto the oblivious Kyoko if they refused. Instantly, Tsuna shouted, “Stab me!”

“Wait, Tenth!”

“Tsuna you can’t—!”

“I _can_ and I _will_.” He pretended like his legs weren’t shaking. He’s been stabbed before, right? A couple of times – _he pretended like he couldn’t hear his own cries of pain as the Leader stabbed spikes into his arms and legs, forcing him to stay immobile_ – he shivered. Could he handle it _now_? Could _this body_ handle it?

It would have to…for the girls who had nothing to do with this.

“J-Just give me the knife.” Tsuna took it from the man, giving him a quick glare before he looked at the blade. 

“Wait, Tsuna…give me the knife.” Bianchi offered. He shook his head.

“…I’ll stab myself.” _I deserve it anyway. Yamamoto and Gokudera took plenty of wounds for me._ He took a deep breath. He felt disoriented and woozy – _was this a knife, or a kunai in his hand?_ But he still pointed the knife to his side, and hoped he wouldn’t hit anything important.

With another deep breath, he was about to stab himself when a scream stopped him.

They looked up to the feed and, to their relief, Doctor Shamal had actually saved the day, as well as an older Ipin and Lambo.

Tsuna was never more grateful for the ten-year bazooka in his life.

With the girls saved and the knife dropped, it was _Tsuna_ who walked right up to the man and punched him in the face.

“Y-You brat…!”

“You thought you would just go free after endangering Kyoko and Haru like that?” He glared at him and Birds flinched (he didn’t realize his eyes reflected a bit of blue and _red_ in them, causing him to look far scarier than he could imagine).

Gokudera kicked him next, effectively knocking him out, and with Doctor Shamal, Lambo and Ipin effectively taking care of everything from the other end, Tsuna felt his heartrate calm significantly.

 

Fuuta had appeared, only to disappear once again into the forest, claiming he couldn’t go back with them.

Tsuna wasn’t sure what compelled him to follow and separate from the group (Fuuta had disappeared quickly, and the rest of the group had yelled at him to come back) but he felt like _something_ was pulling him in deeper.

He stumbled out of the bush, nearly knocking into another Kokuyou student who seemed just as surprised to see him as Tsuna was.

It was odd…he felt _off_ …

…why did his hair almost resemble a _pineapple_ of all things?

“Oh?”

“U-Um…” Tsuna backed away, not really _enjoying_ the look or the aura the other male gave off.

The boy suddenly gave him a smile (Tsuna could recognize a fake smile when he saw one…) and leaned in closer. Their faces were an inch apart. Tsuna forced himself to stay still. “You’re here to help us, aren’t you?”

“Uh…what?”

“We’re _saved_! I honestly thought we’d never make it out of here alive…” The boy put a hand on his chest, letting out what was probably a sigh of relief.

“Y-Yeah…sorry to keep you waiting…” He was still on edge, and he had a funny feeling about this guy… He kept an arms-length from him. If he wanted to fake being his ally, he would let him for the moment.

Wait a second…if he was apparently a “prisoner…” then he would know where _others_ who have been held captive are too…

“…hey…um…” Tsuna fidgeted. “Look, I’m gonna have to go back to my friends soon, but…can you answer a question for me?”

“About what?” The boy asked, tilting his head slightly.

“Well...have you seen a boy that was possibly captured here too? He has dark hair and eyes, and he’s taller than me, and um…this might sound weird but he carries around these tonfa…”

He noticed a small light of recognition in the boy’s eyes, but he faked a frown and shook his head. “No, sorry. They must have locked him up somewhere away from the others.”

“Oh…” This guy was lying, he could _feel_ it. Tsuna stepped away. “Sorry…but I should really be heading back…the gate is open though and it’s not hard to find so um…bye.” He quickly jogged off before the boy could ask him anymore.

The others must be worried sick.

O~O~O

Mukuro hummed as he watched the Tenth Vongola Boss’s back, before he disappeared back into the forest. How strange…it was obvious from his body language and how uncomfortable he was, he could _tell_ he was lying. But he still stayed. And even asked about Kyoya Hibari.

Oh, this was _rich_. He let out a small laugh. The boy had just _handed_ his weakness over to him.

No matter, the child seemed weak anyway. It was a good thing he hadn’t killed Hibari – now he could use him against the Tenth. _If_ it was necessary.

This would definitely be fun, messing with the kid.

It was a perk that he was cute too.

O~O~O

Tsuna _hated_ his sense of direction sometimes.

He was pretty sure he had run into the trees in a straight line, but now that he was actually running back through, he wasn’t sure anymore.

What was even stranger was the fact that no one had found him yet.

He expected, by now, to run into Gokudera, Yamamoto, or Bianchi at this point. Hell, he even expected Reborn! But no, the trees were quiet and the only thing he could hear was twigs and leaves crunching under his feet.

Something happened.

It was like dread had punched in his gut as soon as he realized it. Matched with the dread at the realization that he had _absolutely no idea where Hibari was_ gave him a terrible taste in his mouth. Once again, he was conflicted. He was alone again, meaning he could possibly deviate from the group and try to find Hibari first.

…but he had also promised to focus on the mission and Fuuta. And the boy was definitely acting weird earlier.

Besides, who’s to say they won’t accidentally find Hibari at this point? They hadn’t even run into Mukuro yet!

There was still hope, right?

 

Of course, the first thing Tsuna would find, when he came back out, was the others facing the Mukuro Reborn had shown them in a photo. He nearly took a step back into the forest when he noticed both Gokudera and Yamamoto were down. The only one standing at this point was Bianchi.

“H-Hey!” He called attention to himself, as if he still had those blue eyes and blonde hair. “What do you think you’re doing?!”

The look he gave him was enough to make him let out a small squeak of horror. _Why did I just do that?!_

“Come down here, Vongola.”

“I-I…” He wanted to, oh hell he wanted to punch him. But at the same time…he couldn’t fight, could he?

He hesitated half a second too long.

A couple things happened in a few seconds.

Mukuro turned on Bianchi, nearly about to kill her. A shot rang out and Tsuna felt a familiar blast of pain in his forehead – then a familiar sense of pure _regret._ The power of Dying Will burst through him, and he found himself with familiar tunnel vision, stopping the ball that was about to kill Bianchi before it could touch her.

“REBORN!” He yelled out with a growl, his pupil-less eyes glared Mukuro down. “ _I will take you down with my dying will!”_

 

Fighting filled Tsuna with a familiar rush that was only similar to a past life, where his eyes were blue and the _burning want_ to be a leader, to be _recognized_ was in his chest. Where his goal was a lonely boy with cold dark eyes and fists were the way to settle things faster than words could.

The thrill frightened, yet energized him.

The fact that he was actually _enjoying_ being able to keep up, that he had a challenge and that the opponent in front of him would end up getting beaten…it wasn’t him. Well, it was him but it _wasn’t._

It was his _past_. It was the _dying will_.

It wasn’t Tsuna.

Tsuna wasn’t a fighter. He was a coward and a weakling at best.

Still, he fought. He fought with all he had.

But he realized something, as he kept fighting.

This person wasn’t trying to kill him, not directly.

He knows how it feels. He _remembers_ what it’s like to have an opponent out for your blood. To have an opponent that was fixated on seeing your blood spilled and the life forever gone from your eyes. He’s experienced it too many times and this person was like another, who hadn’t aimed to kill. A boy who had protected his master with his life.

The “final blow” solidified it for him. He wasn’t dead.

“…You’re not that evil of a person.” He announced as he sat up, bruised and bloody, but still very much alive.

“You…what did you say?”

“That weak will of yours could _never_ defeat my Dying Will.” 

“ _Will_?!” The fake Mukuro growled. “Don’t talk as if you know _anything_ about me!” He ran at him. “Killing you is my true will!”

“That’s a lie!” Tsuna yelled back, giving him one final blow with a punch to the abdomen. He went on his knees, coughing blood.

“H-How…?”

Tsuna sighed, feeling the power of dying will leave him. “When you attacked…you closed your eyes. You didn’t let you ball finish the blow. You were…guilty, weren’t you?” He looked up at him. “…you’re strange. I have this feeling about you…” He looked away. “I…didn’t feel any fear towards you.”

“I admit defeat.” The fake said with a sigh. “No wonder Rokudou Mukuro is cautious about you…”

Tsuna sighed. “…you’re not the one we’re looking for…” It felt familiar, he had almost guessed it. His mind turned to a group of people with orange hair, who had really been controlled by one red-haired man.

He shook his head, informing him that the real Mukuro never got his photo taken. Then, he proceeded to tell him how Mukuro was adopted by his family and ended up controlling him to kill everyone. He became a killing machine and ended up becoming the fake Mukuro because of it.

Sadly, before he could tell the real Mukuro’s plans, he was attacked by the same guy who used yo-yos from the shadows and fell unconscious in front of them after giving his name – Lanchia.

Tsuna was angrier and far more disoriented than before. Seeing someone get attacked and nearly die once again in front of him was…not something he was prepared for just yet. The fight had him terribly disoriented (not to mention he was now only in his boxers). When he blinked, he would see the ruins of his home village, and when he would blink again he was back here, among his friends.

But still…the _real_ Mukuro was still waiting. And Hibari was still trapped somewhere.

Tsuna wanted to get this over with, before he collapsed from exhaustion or got any terrible flashbacks.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I just wanted to notify all of you, there's a good chance (like, 75% chance?) that I'll be deleting this series to put it all under one fanfic. I'm doing that over on Fanfiction.net, and these oneshots are becoming a bit longer than I planned in the beginning.   
> It's just a heads up. The series will be up for a while before I officially make a decision. But I will be busy taking it all down and re-uploading it on Fanfiction.net, so don't be surprised if the next part takes a while, or if this series is replaced with one fanfic.  
> And since I put it on Fanfiction.net, if there are any questions you can go to my Tumblr pandoradoodlebox. Thank you!


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